camp questions

It's here.  Yay?  The first day of fall camp.  If you like you can call it the first day of football season.  Personally I wait until Monday of the first game week for that, because that's when I get this machine moving into its football rhythm, but today is just fine too if it suits you.

I do not write a full-blown preview of the season until I see how camp went, because stuff always changes.  Always.  But I do whet your appetite just a little every year with what I think are the questions that we need to answer by the end of August.  Something a little more specific than just "what are the freshmen going to look like?"  That is what we'll do today.  These are the issues I think are most important for this year's practices.

1. Will Mike London keep his promise to pick a quarterback and stick with him?

You'll note that the QB thing is most emphatically not "Lambert or Watford?"  It doesn't matter.  It's a different question than last year entirely.  When the choice was between Rocco and Sims, it was a question of experience and stability vs. dazzling potential.  It mattered a bit more.  This year it doesn't.  Watford has played a little, but his limited run in 2011 isn't very informative and so much has happened since then that it wouldn't be fair to base any judgments on it.  Both are close to equally inexperienced.

So no, I don't think it matters whether the coaches choose Watford or Lambert, and anyway it looks like the answer is leaning toward Watford.  Really, I have minimal patience for people who pick one (especially when the candidates have been on the field so little) and root for that one to win and then get all pissy on message boards when their choice disagrees with the coaches.  It smacks of individual over team, it starts unnecessary fights, and its arrogant to think you're that much smarter than the coaches when you don't get to see anything of practice, the film room, or the weight room.  So the real question is: Are we going to have to put up with the wishy-washy stuff again?  After two years of platoonery, it's clear that it doesn't work and probably stunts the growth of both QBs involved.  There's a reason very smart coaches have said that if you have two quarterbacks, you don't have any.  1 + 1 = 1/2.  If just one quarterback takes all the starters snaps this season, it'll produce benefits both this year and in future years.  If not, we'll probably look back at the London era and decide that the reason it was shorter than the Groh era was because he couldn't ever make up his mind about quarterbacks.

2. How will we deal with the Sean Cascarano situation?

Cascarano's hip is more and more sounding like a medical scholarship waiting to happen.  At the very least he's not ready for the start of camp, and at this point, it's a bonus if he can play at all.  Tough situation for the team to lose an experienced senior who's capable of playing both tackle and guard.  Cascarano probably would've lined up at RG, so for starters, the coaches need to decide who takes his place (Conner Davis would be the leading candidate) and then, who steps up to the two-deep.  Might Ross Burbank see some action at guard as well as being the backup center?  (Currently, Jackson Matteo is listed as the starter.)  Ryan Doull is listed as the backup LG and Sean Karl the third-string RG.  That's getting into redshirt freshman territory.

The line is otherwise fairly set.  Jackson Matteo enters camp as the starting center, and that's the only other place where it looks like a change is possible (though not wildly likely), barring further injury.  Morgan Moses and Jay Whitmire look pretty set as the tackles, and Luke Bowanko will have a starting role regardless of where he plays - which is LG at the moment.

3. How much playing time will Taquan Mizzell get?

Kevin Parks is probably going to get carries regardless.  Khalek Shepherd keeps getting talked up, and we barely know a thing about Kye Morgan, who redshirted last year.  (And just as a wild card, LaChaston Smith starts off the fall listed as a running back.  Not terribly surprising, since Smith talked about wanting a shot there, and the depth chart is a little thin at tailback.  But I think ultimately, Smith lands back on defense.)

Most of this won't matter if Mizzell is all that's been advertised.  Parks is a fixture, but Shepherd and Morgan probably won't get in the way if Smoke is Smoke.  Mizzell is said to be an outstanding pass-catcher in addition to all his physical talents as a ballcarrier, which only adds to the likelihood of seeing him on the field.  How big will his role be?  We'll probably know by the end of camp whether he'll see starters carries or not.

4. Can Jake McGee round out his game?

McGee got a few votes for the preseason all-ACC team because he's one hell of a pass-catching weapon, as demonstrated last year.  But as a blocker he's not there yet, or at least, wasn't last year.  He's up 15 pounds from last season, a good sign in that regard as long as it doesn't detract from his fluidity downfield.  If he can really mature into being a true all-around tight end that can road-grade linebackers in the running game, protect against blitzers in pass-blocking, and go downfield as a receiver, he's got the chops to be first-team in the conference at some point.

5. What does the two-deep look like at defensive tackle?

Losing Justin Renfrow was a nasty hit to the depth there.  You've got David Dean and Brent Urban as the starters; that's a good foundation.  DT generally requires three really good options for a rotation, though, or the starters will wear down.  Can Marco Jones be ready?  (He might be needed more at DE, too.)  The rest is freshmen.  Andre Miles-Redmond is coming off a redshirt year, and there's true freshmen Tyrell Chavis (after FUMA-shirting) and Donta Wilkins.  Any or all of them might have to show up on the field at some point, but fall camp will be crucial in establishing a pecking order there.

6. Who wins the placekicking battle?

Ian Frye and Dylan Sims are the main candidates.  Let's hope at least one of them can kick well enough that by October, watching the kicker trot onto the field isn't a reason to have a nervous breakdown.

Obviously, there are all sorts of other things to be worked on.  It'll be interesting to see how the schemes of Jon Tenuta and Steve Fairchild develop.  Same goes for the special teams expertise of Larry Lewis, and Tom O'Brien's contributions to game management, but these won't really be noticed until game time.  And yeah, I do kinda want to see what the freshmen will look like, both the true and the redshirted variety.  All this in just four short weeks; it'll be game time any minute now.

the recruit: Steven Moss

Name: Steven Moss
Position: OG
Hometown: Fredericksburg
School: Chancellor
Height: 6'5"
Weight: 275

24/7: 91, four stars; #14 OG, VA #8, US #215
ESPN: 80, four stars; #18 OG, VA #13, Atl. #44
Rivals: 5.9, four stars; #6 OG, VA #7, US #100
Scout: four stars; #9 OT

Other offers: Oklahoma, Florida State, Virginia Tech, South Carolina, Penn State, Arkansas, Tennessee, North Carolina, Clemson, Auburn, West Virginia, Miami, NC State, Illinois, Maryland, Syracuse, Boston College, Connecticut, Wake Forest

UVA's class of 2014 seems to be shaping up as a mix between the very heavily and very lightly recruited.  Quin Blanding was the first to hop aboard; the next was Steven Moss, not much less-recruiting than Blanding.  Few things make me happier in a recruiting class than a stockpile of top offensive linemen.  With occasional exceptions, Al Groh's OL recruiting at its best was characterized by one major star and then a few fill-ins around that.

Mike London has done a better job stockpiling depth; even so, Moss is the highest-ranked OL he's pulled in so far.  Moss had offers from such luminaries as FSU, Oklahoma, and a myriad of SEC schools, but he was already halfway into UVA's pocket by the time the 2013 class put ink to paper.  Like Blanding, it didn't take him long to make things semi-official and shut down his recruiting.

What makes Moss's ratings so interesting is that he's being rated as a guard.  Obviously, as you can see above, he's not the #1 guard in the country by any stretch, but still: ratings that high are usually found in tackles, not guards.  Moss projects rather heavily as an interior lineman.  He's powerfully built and multiple websites - ESPN and Scout, particularly - praise his strength and mean streak.  The positives listed on Scout's profile are "aggressiveness," "drive blocking," and "nasty streak," which are all pretty much related to each other.

His footwork and athleticism come in for some scrutiny.  24/7 says he's "athletic enough to play right tackle in college," which can be read as code for "but not left tackle," and then they go on to say he'd be a better guard.  And while there have been assessments that say good things about his footwork and movement, he also went to Rivals' camp in Chicago, and, to hear folks there tell it, got owned.  The drills at these camps are generally tailored toward OT-type skills, and Moss didn't really hang with the elite pass-rushers there.  Lateral quickness was said to be an issue. (That said, we're really talking elite here.  The Andrew Browns of the world and such.  That the best of the best beat Moss in a few drills doesn't make him a sudden two-star.)

Moss's size also leans him toward guard.  While he's listed at 6'5", usually, there are also places that say 6'4", which is to say he's probably on the shorter end.  Which is another check in the OG box.  275 pounds is running a little light as well, but I'm actually pretty encouraged by that.  If scouts are saying such awe-inspired things about his strength and power and he's sitting there about 20 pounds lighter than your average college lineman, that can only mean good things when he puts the weight on.

So let's say, what with his size, straight-line power, and questions about his footwork and quickness that ESPN has raised and the Rivals camp seemed to confirm, that Moss is a near-lock for offensive guard.  The post-spring depth chart lists two seniors at guard; the top backups are junior Conner Davis and redshirt freshman Ryan Doull.  Davis will graduate after Moss's freshman year, which presumably will be a redshirt year as there's sufficient depth (Sean Karl is listed at guard, and I would figure, for now, on Jack McDonald and Eric Tetlow starting out at guard too) to let it happen.  Moss, though, could prove to be very tough compeition for that gang.  By 2015, when Moss is (probably) a redshirt freshman, I'm not sure there'll be anyone on the roster so experienced that Moss can't overtake them, if by then he's been living up to his recruiting credentials.

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A couple things need pointing out:

-- Mike Tobey deserves at least a golf clap for making the Team USA U-19 roster for this summer's U-19 world championship.  Did the fact that Tony Bennett is an assistant coach for that team have any hand in that?  Maayyyybe.  It could have.  Some might certainly suggest it.  He's not the guy with final authority, though.

-- This just in from the And They Call Us France Department: Virginia Tech perfume.  The jokes, they write themselves.

-- Andrew Brown is going to announce his college choice on June 29.  All signs point to good news.

the recruit: Sean Karl

Name: Sean Karl
Position: OT
Hometown: Manorville, NY
School: Eastport-South Manor
Height: 6'6"
Weight: 285

24/7: 80; three stars
ESPN: 78; three stars; #75 OT; Atlantic Region #98; NY #4
Rivals: 5.7; three stars; #60 OT; NY #4
Scout: three stars; #95 OT

Other offers: Boston College, Syracuse, Connecticut, Buffalo

Between Michael Mooney at Malvern and Sean Karl, who hails from Long Island, it's almost like Mike London is getting his O-line tips from the lacrosse coaches.  No, Karl doesn't play lacrosse, but he does play basketball.  But he still needs to up his profile some; according to the search enginators, he's only the third most famous athlete named Sean Karl, behind a high school tennis player somewhere and a freckle-faced hockey-playing moppet.

Bet you Karl could beat them both up though.  He's the biggest O-line prospect UVA has in the 2012 - it's possible, maybe likely, that he'll be listed at 300 pounds by the time he arrives.  Karl's recruitment didn't take long; he had most of the Northeast after him, and UVA added themselves to the mix in May or June.  Before July, Karl was a Hoo, with Syracuse as the closest competition.

At his size, Karl projects very well to offensive tackle, but one major adjustment will be required: in high school, he plays exclusively in a two-point stance.  That would've been fine for the awful spread experiment in 2009, but UVA's linemen are back in the traditional three-point stance, so Karl may have a bigger learning curve than his classmates.  (This may be less of a thing this year; ESM has a new coaching staff, which might very well change that technique.)  ESPN uses the word "quick" four times in his scouting report, and praises his nastiness and ability to play in space, but notes that his hand use needs a lot of work; this faintly suggests "right tackle" but not at all authoritatively.

But he'll almost definitely redshirt, and more so because the entire two-deep at tackle returns next year.  (I'm pretty much assuming Landon Bradley isn't returning and that Morgan Moses does.)  With those four plus Tim Cwalina, there shouldn't be any need to play Karl.  But because Kelby Johnson already played this season, a redshirt year for Karl will gain him a lot of separation between him and the current two-deep; in his redshirt frosh year in 2013, Oday Aboushi will have graduated, Moses may or not still be around, and the starters are likely enough to be Sean Cascarano (a senior by then) and Johnson (a junior.)  Assuming Karl develops as projected (and he's a smart guy so why not) he'll probably be on the field and in the rotation early.

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Two bits of details to put out to the masses:

-- It's looking like Kevin Green isn't going to make it to UVA: he's left Fork Union and still has not achieved a qualifying SAT score.  At this point it seems unlikely we can count on him in the future.

-- Kevin Parks and Anthony Mihota picked up weekly honors from the ACC, and Robert Randolph also got some national recognition for his four field goals.  I admit I've been skeptical of Mihota as anything more than an average center, but he's making a convert out of me.  As for Randolph, that was probably one of the most overlooked parts of the William & Mary game.  At least by me.  Randolph was a touch shaky last year but it certainly looks like we're getting the old Randolph back - the one that hit on 17 of 19 in 2009 - and the 48-yarder was particularly encouraging.  I love it when I don't have to have heart palpitations every time the kicker walks on the field.